"Curtain Call" at Art & Light

There's a fabulous new show at Art & Light Gallery called "Curtain Call", and you won't want to miss it. "Imagine finding your favorite paintings in the form of a fabric curtain -- hang it as a wall tapestry, a window curtain, shower curtain...the sky's the limit.  Eight talented artists (Paul Flint, Kyle Buttram, Diane Kilgore Condon, Teri Pena, Hannah Sloan, Signe Grushovenko, Annie Koelle and Angie Schmerbeck)  have painted these original fabric curtains. If you treasure hand-made art works that beg to be touched join usfor "Curtain Call."

Here's a peek of the show, which will be up until the end of the month.

And while you're at Art & Light, be sure to check out Kent Ambler's newest collection, "Running With Paint."

Of course, there's lots more to see. You'll find everything from handmade jewelry and cards to miniature paintings at Art & Light.

Art & Light is a fusion gallery, bringing together visual arts and home accessories to provide a boutique that is at once unique and incredibly usable. Open Friday – Saturday (10 am - 5 pm) and  Monday – Wednesday by appointment

Moveable Type: Letterpress Bash in Greenville

We love hosting educational events throughout the year that keep people excited about handmade techniques. So if you've ever been interested in — or just curious about — letterpress, this is your chance to learn! We're starting off this year with a really exciting affair! In February, with the help of Hughes Main Library, we are bringing the Moveable Type project to Greenville!

Moveable Type is a portable letterpress studio, run by Kyle Durrie. She is making her way around the country holding demonstrations and workshops on the art of letterpress printing. On Thursday, February 16th from 4-7pm, Kyle will park her studio/truck in front of the Hughes Main Library and set up shop. Our event will begin with a quick introduction video in the library, then move outside to the Type Truck, where Kyle will walk us through creating our own letterpress prints.

The event is free and open to the public, although registration is required. Call the library at 527-9293 to register for the Moveable Type event.

Kyle also makes and sells fun letterpress goods so if you didn't stock up at Indie Craft Parade or you've already used up your stash, bring some cash and support this great idea.

DIY Round Up: Jewelry Holders

How many of you (like me) resolve each New Year to keep a better organized life? I've created a whole list of house, yard, and general life projects to keep me going through 2012. However, I don't want all my tasks to be drudge work (i.e., cleaning out the fridge more often). I've resolved to keep things ship-shape in a fashionable and functional way--creative hooks, repurposed wire baskets, refurbished storage units and the like. Or, take a look at these DIY jewelry holders I've collected as reference. I could certainly use any of these to keep all my Indie Craft Parade finds/treasures in order. These three DIY projects have great tutorials, and could totally be finished in a weekend using thrifted or salvaged materials. The weather here in Greenville is gorgeous this weekend. It's days like these that make me hopeful to keep my New Year's resolutions. We'll see how far I get.

A lovely repurposed type drawer from Tonya Staab.

Earring organizer using old frames and thick wire mesh from Dream Green DIY.

Necklace rack/display shelf made with a few materials from the hardware store from A Grateful Prayer and a Thankful Heart.

Open Call for MiniBook Collective

Dear Greenville County Creatives, We have a fabulous opportunity to tell you about coming up this February. Art & Light Gallery and artist Melinda Hoffman are sponsoring the first ever MiniBook Collective project. This is an open exhibition for Greenville County artists, crafters, writers, and collaborators to create a "minibook with one sheet of paper, reflecting a sense of place that shares one's experiences of Greenville County, South Carolina." The challenge is to tell your story on a single sheet of paper.

The competition is free to enter and cash prizes will be awarded. To read about further details and rules, check out the MiniBook Collective page. Submissions are due Wednesday, February 29th. And the opening reception will be hosted at Art & Light on Friday, April 6th.

MiniBook Collective is inspired by the Somethink Collective project in the United Kingdom. Check out their beautiful examples below. Quite inspiring, and we hope to see many Indie Craft Parade participants at the exhibition.

2011 Recap

On this last day of 2011, we're looking back on our festival stats for this year. It's always fun to see these numbers in graphic form. This data comes from applications and from a post-show vendor survey, so keep in mind that any of the vendor information is based only on those who responded to the survey. Click on the countdown graphic below to view all of this year's charts on Daytum — including Exhibitors by State, Entries per Category, and more!

Thank you all for your support of Indie Craft Parade this year and of 'our' artists through this holiday season. We'll see you next year!

Handmade Christmas Centerpieces

I can't believe Christmas is just a few days away! I still have so much to do. Fortunately, my centerpieces for a big Christmas dinner are already made. There will be a little forest of handmade Christmas trees--so festive! I gathered my projects from the round up below. Hope this will provide some last minute handmade inspiration for you as well! Twine wrapped tress from The Thrifty Crafter.

Wax paper tree from Bower Power.

Paper evergreens from Martha Stewart.

Scrapbook cone trees fromBetter Homes and Gardens.

Crepe paper trees from Creative Chaos.

Giveaway Winner Announced!

Congrats to Summer, commenter #29! You are the winner of the Christmas giveaway as chosen by random.org. We'll be emailing you with instructions on how to claim your prize.

Thank you so much to everyone who entered, we so enjoyed hearing what you love about Greenville. Our city is very lucky to have the support of people like you!

2011 Scholarship Winner

A few months ago, we announced the creation of an Indie Craft Parade scholarship fund. Today, we are pleased to announce that the 2011 winner of the $500 scholarship for art funding is Brook Glenn Elementary School in Taylors, SC.

An art project from students at at Brook Glenn.

While we knew it would be hard to choose just one school, since every art program needs extra funding, the board was impressed by the thorough plan submitted by art teacher Laura Shaw for utilizing the money in her arts curriculum. Laura's passion for inspiring students was very clear, and we're excited to partner with her and her school this coming year! Check back early next year for an update on the school and their program!

To introduce you to Brook Glenn, we wanted to share a few of the art projects the students have been working on and some quotes from their application:

"I believe that visual art is a language, one we encounter on an everyday basis and children need the ability to decipher and communicate through art."

Giant Holiday Card, Brook Glenn 5th Grade Class

"I have seen firsthand the joy and confidence a child receives from creating."

Primary Colors bubble wrap print, by Daniel (Pre-K)

We are excited about this new way that Indie Craft Parade can give back to our community, and we want to encourage each of you to remember your local schools too. Through this process, we were reminded that many art programs are lacking basic supplies and even a small donation of $25 or $50 could help greatly. This need prompted our board to contribute an additional $100 for art supplies to a second school, Gateway Elementary.

We've seen a glimpse of how much need there is for supporting the arts in our schools and while we can't fix everything, there are ways each of us can make a difference. Donate extra craft supplies you might have lying around the house, or encourage your church or workplace to contribute unused paper and supplies to a local art program. If you have more suggestions on how to help art teachers and their programs, add your comments below!

Christmas Giveaway!

Update: This giveaway is now closed. Congrats to Summer, the winner! In the spirit of Christmas, we wanted to do something special for you, our wonderful supporters. You know there are two things we love: handmade art and Greenville! So, we put together a lovely basket of handmade goods created by Greenville artists, and some of them inspired by our amazing city. One of you lucky readers will take home this basket of goodies!

Let see what's inside...

Some cozy fingerless gloves made by erin elizabeth

A set of three ceramic pear ornaments created by Crave Studio(photo by Crave Studio)

A box of peppermint bark artisan marshmallows by Malo

The limited edition "What If Greenville" screen-printed poster by Shed Labs(photo by Shed Labs)

A set of six butterfly gift tags created by Royal Buffet

And a "Love Greenville" screen-printed tee shirt by Parachute Clothing(photo by Parachute Clothing) (Winner will specify shirt size)

To enter to win this basket of goodies, leave a comment on this post and tell us something you love about Greenville. A random winner will be chosen and announced Thursday, December 15.

This giveaway is open to anyone in the continental US. If the winner is local, we'll ask them to pick the basket up  in downtown Greenville, SC. If not, we'll ship it to them.

A HUGE thank you to all the wonderful artists listed above, who generously donated these items for the giveaway. Please remember to support your local artists this holiday season. Be good & buy handmade!

An Indie Craft Christmas

We had fun doing a little virtual Christmas shopping for this post! Many of our 2011 Indie Craft Parade artists have Etsy shops, so we love to use tools like Etsy Treasuries to make pretty collections of their work. We wanted to make an Indie Craft Parade Christmas treasury to remind us of all the great things we saw back in September. In  this treasury, we chose items for decorating as well as gift ideas for friends, family members and even your pets! Click on the image to view the treasury, and don't forget that we link to our 2011 artists' online shops at our Participants page! We want to make it easy to support our artists throughout the Christmas season and the coming year!

Christmas Shopping at the Swamp Rabbit Holiday Flea!

One of my favorite things about the city of Greenville is the Swamp Rabbit Trail. This 13 mile walking/biking trail established by the Greenville Hospital System not only promotes healthy living, but also has given people some new business opportunities. When the weather is nice, we're always using the trail, and its been amazing to see new trail-side businesses pop up. One of my favorite places is the Swamp Rabbit Cafe and Grocery. This cute stand is the perfect place to get a post-run or ride snack or even better, to pick up some local meats, cheeses, and produce. The buy local ethic of Swamp Rabbit Cafe so perfectly matches our own mission, that we have to tell you about their upcoming holiday flea. 

At this event you'll find all sorts of amazing goodies that will make the best gifts and stocking stuffers. I know a ton of people don't have their Christmas shopping finished, and this is a perfect way to complete that gift list.

Here's a little preview of all the goodness.

Accessories and vintage items from Shop Keep.

Chocolates by Raw Shakti.

Homemade Jams from Sallies Greatest.

Handprinted tees by Parachute Clothing.

Goat Milk Soaps by Red Clay Soaps.

Be Good & Buy Handmade

Whether you're a shop owner or a shopper, it's always good to be reminded to seek out handmade. Buying mass produced items may be easy, but seeking out something handmade is better for everyone!

To help us remember this, Cory Godbey created a beautiful graphic for us this holiday season! This phrase was borrowed (with permission!) from Micah Coston and the Illyria Pottery holiday show that took place a few weeks ago. We liked it so much that we've immortalized it in official Indie Craft Parade lettering!

And we created a few easy ways for you to share and enjoy:

You can download this graphic in one of three sizes: Huge: high-resolution image you can print for your home or shop Medium: sized for desktop backgrounds! 2560 x 1440, 1920 x 1200, 1440 x 900,  1280 x 800, 1024 x 768 Tiny: 200 x 200 px badge for adding to your blog or site

There are still a few weeks left until Christmas — plenty of time to be good, buy handmade and encourage others to do the same. We want people to remember artists and makers this time of year, so feel free to share, reblog, or print this for your own personal use. Spread the word and remind people how important it is to support handmade art.

Winners announced!

Congratulations to Stephen Crotts, commenter #2 and Robin Asire, commenter #10! You are the lucky winners of the ad space giveaway, as chosen by our good friend random.org. Check your email for instructions on how to claim your prize! Thanks to all who entered, we loved hearing about the special gifts you've given and received. Even if you didn't win, we'd love to have you as sponsors of the Indie Craft Parade blog. Click here to learn more!

Christmas Shows You Don't Want to Miss!

I love Christmas shopping. I love picking up that perfect gift and knowing it's recipient will absolutely love it. Unfortunately, when I had the ideal opportunity to pick out those one-of-a-kind presents at Indie Craft Parade back in September...I wasn't thinking about Christmas at all. I'm sure many of you have the same dilemma as I do, kicking yourself for not gathering those treasures when you had the chance. Well, no fears. Many of our Indie Craft Vendors are involved in special Christmas events, and they've shared with us where you can find their goods in time for Christmas. Some of them are even running online sales. You'll find a lot of your favorites below. So don't procrastinate again! Get out there and find those gifts that are sure to be remembered.

I've listed the information below according to the individual vendors. You'll note that a number of them will be at the same events (increasing your chances of finding holiday goodness).

Katie Coston/Illyria Pottery

An Illyria Pottery Christmas Show We've already had our Christmas show, but we couldn't be a scrooge. Email Katie at kcoston1@gmail.com and set up a time to come by. Not only will you find unique ceramic gifts by Illyria Pottery, but you'll also find a wide variety of paintings by Annie Koelle.

Date and Time: You decide. Send an email with what works for you. Illyria Pottery Studio; 416 Perry Avenue; Greenville, SC 29601

Krista Allison/Canoo

The Big Crafty Sunday, Dec. 4, 12-6pm at Pack Place in Asheville, NC thebigcrafty.com

Presents of Art 2011 Upstairs Artspace, 49 S Trade St, Tryon, NC November 25 - December 24, open Tue-Sat 11-5 Over 60 different arts and crafts vendors in a gallery setting.

Betsy Carr/The Foundling

My studio mate, Amber Mahler of Mani Designs, and I are hosting a Grand Opening & Holiday Sale at our studio here in Asheville.  We'll be opening our shared studio space to the public for the first time, and hosting a sale of our work plus a few friends.  Our neighbor, Mimi Strang, will be doing the same.  We'll have about 10 artists in the building and local food trucks outside.

Found*ling & Mani Designs Studio Grand Opening & Holiday Sale December 10 & 11, 11-6 each day 15B Domino Lane (behind Harvest Records in West Asheville)

Stacey Budge-Kamison/Urban GypZ

I am participating in a Holiday Artist Sale with 6 other Asheville artists in West Asheville Dec. 10-11, 11-6

Cindy Jantz/The Herb Garden Soaps

The Herb Garden Open House Christmas Sale We'll be selling handmade soap including our new Winter and Christmas scents (buy 12, get one free).  In addition to the soap, we'll be offering a variety of scrubs. Gift bags and gift packaging available.

130 Rubiwood Circle, Greer, SC 29651

Friday, December 9 from 3:00-8:00 Saturday, December 10 from 9:00-5:00 Saturday, December 17 from 9:00-5:00

Rachael Madeline/Loose Tooth Studio

I am having an online sale in my Etsy shop. For the next week I have a holiday promotion where shipping is free, just enter the code 'FBfree' upon checkout. Lots of brand new original work to choose from, affordably priced, framed and ready to display.   Here is a link to my blog, where buyers can read more about my studio process & concepts.

Once Again Sam

I'm participating in three upcoming craft shows / exhibits. I'm also planning on doing a coupon code for my Etsy shop for the week of December 5th through the 11th. The coupon for a 20% off at Once Again Sam is YESPLEASE

Art & Light Gallery Now through the holidays: Open Friday & Saturday's A selection of my felted curiosities are available as well as a line of woodland-inspired ornaments created exclusively for Art & Light. www.artandlightgallery.com

American Advertising Federation's 7th Annual TWIST Art Show Thursday December 1st from 6 PM to 9 PM at the Fish Eye Studios (Greenville) Amateur and professional artists will exhibit and sell work, some of which is related to the advertising industry, but not all. This event is open to the public and there will be a silent auction where all proceeds benefit Special Olympics and AAF Greenville's Diversity, Education & Public Service initiatives and club operations.

Holiday Handmade Hoopla Saturday, December 3 10— Noon (VIP preview, $15) Noon — 6 (open to all, free) Bijou Building, 147 East Main St., Downtown Spartanburg www.hub-bub.com

Savannah Wallace/Maie Dae

We are currently promoting our holiday line on our shop. AND we just launched our very first lookbook for the holidays here.

Brandy Lindsey/Dangle and Thread

Holiday Handmade Hoopla Saturday, December 3 10— Noon (VIP preview, $15) Noon — 6 (open to all, free) Bijou Building, 147 East Main St., Downtown Spartanburg www.hub-bub.com

Bailey Ellis/Bailey O'Neal Jewelry

I am having an online sale via Etsy this Friday, Saturday and the following Monday.

Bailey O'Neal Jewelry Black Friday Sale Friday 5 a.m-Monday at Midnight Black Friday 30% (early bird special 5-7a.m),  Small Business Saturday 20% and Sunday-Cyber Monday 15% off entire purchase.

Rajshel Juhan/Jane Hancock Papers

Save 40% on all items 11/26 - 11/27 use code turkey

Hallie Gillett/Hal the Gal

Afraid all my LIVE shows are done for the year, but the etsy shop is full with lots of new additions!

Mike Merrit/Mike Merritt Art

Presents of Art 2011 Upstairs Artspace, 49 S Trade St, Tryon, NC November 25 - December 24, open Tue-Sat 11-5 Over 60 different arts and crafts vendors in a gallery setting.

Jessica and Britt/Owlette Collective

Porter Flea Nashville, TN, Dec. 3rd, 12-8 The East Nashville Community Center

The Big Crafty Sunday, Dec. 4, 12-6pm at Pack Place in Asheville, NC thebigcrafty.com

K.D.'s Treehouse Holiday Pop-up shop Columbia, SC, Dec. 10, 1-4 KD's Treehouse

Audrey Laine Cunningham/Audrey Laine Collections

Holiday Market and Fashion Show Asheville Art Museum Friday December 2nd

Holiday Handmade Hoopla Saturday, December 3 10— Noon (VIP preview, $15) Noon — 6 (open to all, free) Bijou Building, 147 East Main St., Downtown Spartanburg www.hub-bub.com

The Big Crafty Sunday, Dec. 4, 12-6pm at Pack Place in Asheville, NC thebigcrafty.com

Jennifer Bedenbaugh/Crave Studio

Presents of Art 2011 Upstairs Artspace, 49 S Trade St, Tryon, NC November 25 - December 24, open Tue-Sat 11-5 Over 60 different arts and crafts vendors in a gallery setting.

Laura Ray/Pogo Shop

The pogos and I will be joining other local artisans at the 3rd annual Sustainable Midlands Holiday Celebration in  Columbia, SC. Monday, Nov. 28th. 4:30 - 8:30 pm at the lovely 701 Whaley St. Gallery. Tickets are available at http://www.sustainablemidlands.org/?p=2986

Erin Godbey/17 Dove Street

Holiday Handmade Hoopla Saturday, December 3 10— Noon (VIP preview, $15) Noon — 6 (open to all, free) Bijou Building, 147 East Main St., Downtown Spartanburg www.hub-bub.com

Lauren and Jason/Marisol Spoon

Porter Flea - Nashville - Dec. 3rd The artisan market will be held on Saturday, December 3rd, from 12-8 PM indoors at the East Park Community Center, 600 Woodland Street, located in East Nashville.  Porter Flea: Holiday will feature handmade gifts from over 60 local and regional artisans and designers, half a dozen popular food trucks, and live DJs.  This one-of-a-kind market event will also benefit the East Park Community Center and Metro Parks.

Chatty Crafty DIY Holiday, 2011 Saturday + Sunday, December 10 + 11 Warehouse Row, North Bldg, Suite 118 1110 Market Street Chattanooga, Tenn. Chatty Crafty is a juried DIY/Indie Craft Show in Chattanooga, Tennessee. This event plays host to DIY and Indie crafters & their wares from around the country.

The Rock & Shop Market Motorco, Full Steam Brewery & The Trotter Building - Durham, NC December 17th 2011 12-6pm An indoor shopping, music & fashion event spotlighting emerging local bands and designers selling their wares. Grab a beer at the bar, shop local from talented designers and hear great music.

We Are Giving Away Advertising Space!

Our goal for the Indie Craft Parade blog is to bring you useful information all year long, whether you're a buyer, a seller, or just an admirer of all things handmade. Besides our posts, we also have ad spaces for sale. Yes, advertising helps us raise a little bit of money, but hopefully it also keeps you up to date on events and lets you know about great shops and handmade goods outside of our own annual festival. We know that a lot of artists and entrepreneurs are running Christmas sales and that they're figuring out how to get the word out about their shops this time of year. So we have a little holiday special of our own.We're giving away two half-size blog ads for the month of December. All you have to do is leave a comment below for a chance to win.

These two winners will be chosen randomly and announced on November 28th. If you're a winner, keep in mind you will need to give us artwork for your ad by the 30th. We know it's a tight turnaround, but we want to make sure you get the full month of December on the blog!

Please note. This isn't limited to artists. It could be for an event, a business-- anything that you think our readers would like to know about.

To enter to win free ad space, answer this question in the comments below: What is the most meaningful gift you've ever given or received?

Thanksgiving DIY Round Up

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I love that it's not over commercialized. I love the time spent with family. I love the traditions we've made over the years--Oh and the food. This girl has a Southern family that can cook like nobody's business. Perhaps the only thing I don't love is our lack of great decor for the Thanksgiving holiday. Admittedly, I put so much more effort into decorating for Christmas, that I feel Thanksgiving gets ignored. Well, not this year. I've got just over a week till turkey day, and I'm loving some of these DIY projects I'm sharing today. I hope you will find these as inspiring as I do!

These linen napkins from The Purl Bee seem so easy to make, and I think they're quite beautiful with this ombre look.

I've seen a lot of ways that people count and record their blessings, but this might be my favorite. I love how the tutorial from Craftzine.com uses chalkboard paint "leaves" for Thanksgiving guests to write on. I think this project would be especially fun for kids to get involved.

I love this idea as an alternative to place cards. Elizabeth Anne Designs salvaged vintage spoons and hammered guests' names into them. They look so pretty with a finished table setting.

Ok, I've seen countless cake toppers. But a pretty pie topper--Who knew? I think pies are generally under-appreciated, and this swag from Oh Happy Day just makes me smile.

It's official! Dates for Indie Craft Parade 2012.

We're quite excited because we recently got confirmation on our dates for the 2012 Indie Craft Parade. The festival will be held Friday, September 7 through Sunday, September 9. For a while we were afraid we might have to change our venue or drastically alter the dates due to renovations on the Huguenot Mill (our location for the last two years). However, our dates are in the clear. We'll be back at the beautiful restored mill, and we're so ready to begin planning our work for next year! Stay tuned. All of the new information for next year will be available on our home page within the near future.

Tools of the Trade: Marketing

We all know that making our crafts is the easy part. Running the business is where it gets hard. Even though Indie Craft Parade isn't necessarily a business, it takes the same focus and effort of a business venture to put on our event each year. So we want to share the resources we use to make our lives a little easier. To follow up on last week's post on keeping your business organized, we wanted to give you a few online sites we use that focus on marketing and selling goods.

Facebook is truly one of the best ways to network your small business. The social sphere online has a massive audience, which means your products can be spread way beyond your physical contacts. The more you post, the more people will acknowledge your presence. Plus Facebook provides a perfect occasion for others to spread your information. It definitely takes creativity and a bit of discipline to maintain your online presence, but the rewards are certainly worth it. We've heavily relied on Facebook to get the word out about Indie Craft Parade. Besides it's potential to reach new people, Facebook makes it very easy to create events and interact with fans.

Mail Chimp has been a great tool for managing our email campaign. The software is surprisingly simple and easy to use, and it has features such as customizable templates which make the emails going to your fans look organized and professional. Not only does Mail Chimp manage your email lists, but also it shows you stats about unsubscribers and if your emails were read. The service is also free.

Big Cartel might be a good fit for you if you are thinking about opening an online store. Although we think Etsy is a fabulous resource for selling your goods online, Big Cartel gives you your own website, and you won't have the hassle being lost among the thousands of other vendors on Etsy. We've used Big Cartel to sell Indie Craft merchandise after our event in September. The entry level of Big Cartel is free. That subscription only allows you to sell a couple of products at a time, which isn't a problem if you're just getting started. But the prices of higher subscriptions are reasonable if you want to fully customize your store.

Twitter has many of the social benefits of Facebook paired down into small bits of information at a time. Unlike Facebook where you primarily follow friends and personal contacts, twitter allows you to follow and be followed by people with similar interests. This is an excellent way to get your products and information out to a group of people with a specific interest in arts and crafts. If you're not particularly internet savvy, and maintaining both a Facebook and Twitter account isn't appealing, you can link them together. You can configure your accounts so when you update one, the other updates as well, saving you the time and effort.

Again, this list is just the beginning of helpful resources. We'd love to hear your opinions and experiences about these services and others that you've used. Let's help spread the knowledge!

Tools of the Trade: Staying Organized

As you expand your craft business, find new inspiration, and make new connections, it's very easy to get bogged down in one particular area--how to organize everything. This happens to everyone, so we wanted to share with you some online (and free!) programs we've used to keep all of the craziness that comes with running a craft fair in check. They're all so easy to set up, online support is easy to access, and they can be accessed from multiple devices.

Dropbox allows you to store and share files online. This is particularly helpful if you have large files that need to be transferred and reviewed by multiple people. File sharing is extremely easy to set up, and you won't have to chase down emails to find the right files. We've used it to send artwork to vendors and other collaborators.

Pinterest. We've mentioned this before, but Pinterest is the best way we've found to keep all of our visual inspiration in one place. As you browse the internet and come across things you like, you simply "pin" them to your personal boards, and they'll link you back to your original source. This is an awesome way to catalogue DIY projects, tutorials, and all of the random things you love. Pinterest was our means for keeping an inspiration board for Indie Craft Parade 2011. And other people used it for making wishlists of things to buy at the event. Check out the Indie Craft Parade Pinterest Board to see what we find inspiring.

Google Docs might be our favorite collaborative tool. Last year we used an online project management software that worked well, but Google Docs has proven to be even more convenient. We've used it for sharing documents with each other internally as well as surveying our vendors after the show. It's a super handy and free way to keep everyone organized and on the same page.

Evernote is like the ultimate to-do list. If you need to access both visual and written information, this might be perfect for you. Not only can you keep your online picture clippings together, you can also record to do lists or plan meetings and trips. Also Evernote has a keyword search function that makes it easy to find everything you've squirreled away.

This is just a short list of websites we like. We'd love to hear your thoughts on these or have you recommend what's been helpful for you!

Greenville Open Studios

Many of you probably work or live right around the corner from a Greenville artist, and you don't even know it. Local artists don't always work out of galleries or official studios, which is why you should take advantage of Greenville's annual Open Studios. This event not only gives the community a chance to meet more of Greenville's artists but also to tour their work spaces, to get to know their processes, and to connect on a more personal level. Open Studios this year falls on Saturday, November 5, 10am - 6pm & Sunday, November 6, Noon - 6pm. A few artists are even open on Friday evening.

About Greenville Open Studios from the Metropolitan Arts Council:

Now beginning its tenth year, Greenville Open Studios began as an idea cast about during a casual conversation between a small group of artists several years ago; they discussed doing something to raise awareness in the greater community of the tremendous creative energy in the area. The idea has evolved into a full-fledged annual event. The goals of Greenville Open Studios are to provide free and convenient community access to visual arts, to educate and create a dialogue between artists and the general public by opening artists’ place of work and inviting the community-at-large to participate in the creative process, and to create new marketing opportunities for artists. It is the organizers’ desire that the project will open up the world of visual artists to everyone – from the seasoned collector to the first-time art buyer to the curious general public.

Also check out the Open Studios page for more information about their mobile site which is complete with studio maps--very handy in finding which artists are closest to you.

Every year this event proves the great talent we have in and around our town, and you really don't want to miss out on the chance to enjoy it. Mark your calendars!